Deryck Whibley, the frontman of Sum 41, has revealed shocking allegations of abuse in his upcoming memoir, Walking Disaster: My Life Through Heaven and Hell.
Set to be released later this month, the book details Whibley’s claims of being groomed and sexually and verbally abused by the band’s first manager, Greig Nori, during the early stages of their career (as per Los Angeles Times).
Whibley, who was only 16 when Sum 41 began working with Nori, alleges that the then-34-year-old manager slowly transitioned from being a music mentor to a controlling and abusive boss. The singer recounts a disturbing incident at a rave where Nori allegedly kissed him passionately in a restroom stall after offering him ecstasy.
The memoir describes how Whibley tried to distance himself from the physical relationship, only to be accused of homophobia by Nori, who claimed Whibley “owed” him for helping start their career. Although the sexual encounters eventually ceased, Whibley alleges that Nori continued to be abusive towards the band, forcing them to credit him as a co-writer on songs and failing to respond to requests.
Sum 41 ultimately fired Nori in 2005, and Whibley claims he hasn’t spoken to his former manager since. The frontman admits that he struggled to process these experiences, initially not recognising them as abuse. It wasn’t until he confided in his former partner, Avril Lavigne, that he heard his experiences described as sexual abuse.
“I went through a long period of my time where I didn’t think about it anymore. I came to realise it was self-defence,” Whibley told Rolling Stone. “I came to realise later on that I didn’t want to think about it or have any feelings of being a victim. I didn’t want to have victim issues.”
Whibley acknowledges that he’s still in the early stages of processing what happened to him. He explains that he didn’t fully realise the gravity of the situation until he reached the age Nori was at the time of the alleged abuse.
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While he didn’t speak to his bandmates about the allegations at the time, Whibley says he sent them the memoir. “He became kind of a bad guy to all of us,” Whibley said. “We all collectively never spoke about him.”
Walking Disaster: My Life Through Heaven and Hell is, according to Whibley, about the personal inspiration behind the lyrics that end up backing Sum 41’s music, both the good and the ugly.
“Everything that is on the records is coming from my personal experience, even if it’s just vague in the lyrics,” Whibley said. “When I started writing, I told myself, ‘Don’t try to make yourself sound cool. Just fucking write the true story.’ And I never stopped. It all just came out.”
In other Sum 41 news, the Canadian band are one of the big draws at Good Things 2024. They’re part of this year’s lineup alongside Korn, Violent Femmes, Jet, Kerry King, and more.
